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Naomi Cook : Allegory Algorithm

Allegory Algorithm addresses different modes of data visualization used by the artist as allegories for current socio-politcal events. In turn, these works are complemented by more classical allegorical drawings that speak to the movement and fluctuation of data-driven environments.

This exhibition is comprised of three elements: The BATS stock exchange visualization, the Pianola Project, and the Forms drawing series. The BATS stock exchange visualization is a set of drawings accompanying a six minute hand-drawn video mapping the drop in value of a stock affected by high-frequency trading algorithms. Each second of the video shows three milliseconds of the original stock data. The Pianola Project is based on a player piano scroll of Pete Wendling’s song “Hesitation Blues”. This was used as a template to transfer the placement of notes onto a 4 x 18 ft roll of paper, embellishing the original in a fractal-inspired way influenced by Benoit Mandelbrot’s theory of noise and disturbance. The Forms series uses many of the stylistic similarities in Cook’s data processing and visualization to depict ambiguous human forms in bizarre yet classical poses, as if cast from a mould of manipulated data.

Naomi Cook is a multi-disciplinary artist based in Montreal. Cook’s technique stems from interests in engravings, sound and visual representations of sound. In 2005, she founded Red Bird Gallery and Studios in Montreal, working as director and curator until 2010. She subsequently relocated to Berlin, collaborating on projects and proposals including an immersive architectural work. Her work was featured in several group exhibitions in Montreal and abroad, online as a frequent contributor to GIF LORDS, and in the 2014 edition of POP Montreal. Most recently her works were selected by Canadian Art Magazine as favourites of the 2015 edition of PAPIER Art Fair.

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